North Monterey County Unified School Districtor NMCUSD is a school district

School district

School districts are a form of special-purpose district which serves to operate the local public primary and secondary schools.-United States:...

 in northern Monterey County. The school district serves 5581 pupils in the communities of Aromas

Aromas, California

Aromas is a census-designated place in Monterey County, and San Benito County, California, United States. The CDP straddles the border of the two counties, with Monterey County to the west and San Benito County to the east. The Santa Cruz County line is less than a mile to the Northwest, and...

, Castroville

Castroville, California

Castroville is a census-designated place in Monterey County, California, United States. Castroville is located northwest of Salinas, at an elevation of 23 feet . The population was 6,481 at the 2010 census, down from 6,724 at the 2000 census. Castroville calls itself "Artichoke Center of the...

, Elkhorn

Elkhorn, California

Elkhorn is a census-designated place in Monterey County, California, United States. Elkhorn was a stop on the Southern Pacific Railroad northwest of Prunedale, at an elevation of 10 feet . The population of Elkhorn was 1,565 at the 2010 census, down from 1,591 at the 2000 census. Elkhorn was...

, Prunedale

Prunedale, California

Prunedale is a census-designated place in Monterey County, California, United States. Prunedale is located north of Salinas, at an elevation of 92 feet . The population was 17,560 residents at the time of the 2010 census, up from 16,432 at the 2000 census...

, Royal Oaks, Moss Landing

Moss Landing, California

Moss Landing is a census-designated place in Monterey County, California, United States. Moss Landing is located on the Pajaro Valley Consolidated Railroad north-northeast of Monterey, at an elevation of 10 feet . As of the 2010 census, the CDP population was 204, down from 300 at the 2000...

, and portions of Salinas, California

Salinas, California

Salinas is the county seat and the largest municipality of Monterey County, California. Salinas is located east-southeast of the mouth of the Salinas River, at an elevation of about 52 feet above sea level. The population was 150,441 at the 2010 census...

. The district's average spending per pupil is 4402 and the average teacher salary is 37108 http://www.thecalifornian.com/communities/districts/northmontereycountyunifiedschooldistrict.html. NMCUSD students are 66% Hispanic or Latino, 29% White, 2% Filipino, 1% Asian, and 1% African American http://www.greatschools.net/cgi-bin/ca/district_profile/388. The API scores of secondary schools are average in the statewide context and above average in the context of similar schools while the elementary schools are below average http://www.greatschools.net/cgi-bin/ca/district_profile/388. Carolyn Post is the current Superintendent and she has served in that position since 2005.

District Governance

NMCUSD is governed by a 5 member Board of Trustees. Each member is elected to serve a 4 year term. The Board elects among its own members a President, Vice-President, Clerk, and a Parliamentarian. The Board of Trustees is responsible for making all decisions concerning the allocation of district funds with the advice of the district's administration, teachers, staff, and community members and within the limits, laws, and guidelines of state of California and the United States.

Measure E and Recent Controversy

Measure E passed in November 2002 with 68.3% of the vote. The bond measure provided $20,750,000 for repairs and refurbishing of district schools and funds for the construction of a new middle school. The bond measure replaced an expiring bond used to construct North Monterey County High School thus caused only minimal increases in property taxes. The district ordered the modular classrooms and had begun leveling and altering the terrain to build a new middle school when the district learned that the site was too close to the high voltage power lines. The district had no new middle school and less than $900,000 in available funds. NMCUSD recently decided to expand its current middle school site, the converted former Joseph Gambetta Middle School, by adding the portables the district had already purchased.

Parents have voiced their discontent at school board meetings and asked questions concerning the spending of Measure E funds. The engineering firm Modtech filed a lawsuit against NMCUSD for $69,000 on March 29, 2007 The teachers went on a “sick out” strike in late March to lobby for higher wages before a deal was agreed to in April. The district also faces budgetary problems due to the short term California wide decline in student enrollment.

Schools

Castroville Elementary School

Echo Valley Elementary

Elkhorn Elementary School

Prunedale Elementary School

North Monterey County Middle School (formerly Joseph Gambetta Middle School)

North Monterey County High School

North Monterey County High School

North Monterey County High School is a high school in Castroville, California and was founded in 1978. The high school serves the populations of Aromas, Castroville, Prunedale, Royal Oaks, Elkhorn, and portions of Salinas. North Monterey County High School is part of the North Monterey County...

Independent Study

Central Bay High School